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WIN Public Engagement support

Monthly public engagement drop-in clinics: the WIN public engagement team offers monthly drop-in clinics on the third Wednesday of every month, 10:30-11:30am, alternating online via Teams and in person at the WIN public engagement office. Suitable for people at any stage of public engagement experience; feel free to come with specific questions about a new public engagement idea you're developing, or more general queries about how to get involved in WIN's many existing public engagement opportunities.

Public engagement team: the WIN has a Public Engagement Manager (Dr Carinne Piekema) and a Public Engagement Officer (Dr Hanna Smyth). Feel free to get in touch with us! (Click our hyperlinked names to access our email addresses). 

Lending library of public engagement materials: you can borrow from the WIN's extensive inventory of public engagement materials to use in sessions you are running - e.g. activities for primary and secondary school visits, tech equipment, and more. Contact the public engagement team to enquire about availability.  

University of Oxford Public Engagement Resources

The best way to keep up to date on public engagement at Oxford is to subscribe to the monthly PER Digest: email publicengagement@admin.ox.ac.uk including ‘Start PER DIGEST’ in the email subject line.

 

The university's MPLS Division has an online self-guided two-hour "Introduction to Public Engagement with Research" course that you can access for free (with your university SSO login credentials). 

 

The university's Medical Sciences Division has a comprehensive public engagement portal sharing info on training and funding opportunities, equipment for loan, and links to various opportunities and toolkits. Like every Division of the university, Medical Sciences has a Divisional Public Engagement Coordinator, and many Medical Sciences departments and research centres also have their own public engagement staff, like the WIN. 

 

The university's central Public Engagement with Research team (based in Research Services) signposts funding opportunities, toolkits, contacts across the university, and more. 

 

Public Engagement Facilitator Network (PEFN): PEFN is a University-wide network, which creates opportunities for networking, shared learning and best practice in all things Public Engagement with Research. Launched in February 2021, the network involves informal meetings once or twice a term, with the opportunity for responsive and flexible interaction through a dedicated MS Team with subject specific channels. The aim of the network is to provide peer support and create a community comprised of staff at the University of Oxford who actively support, facilitate and/ or lead Public Engagement with Research as part of their role. It is designed for and by the PEFN community, and its direction is led by its members, their interests and goals. 

 

Evaluation resources: the university has how-to guides available for evaluating different types of public engagement activities (e.g. citizen science, performances, exhibitions) as well as an evaluation planning template and various other resources. 

 

New to Oxford PER Buddy Scheme: are you new to Oxford, or new to public engagement at Oxford? This scheme is an informal and flexible way for those who are new, or relatively new, to Public Engagement with Research (PER) at Oxford. You’ll be connected to a buddy who can answer questions, introduce you to what's going on in terms of PER support, information and programmes that you might not otherwise be aware of, and just generally be a friendly face whilst you find your feet. 

 

External public engagement resources

The National Coordinating Centre for Public Engagement has a wealth of resources available, including case studies, guidance on partnership working, insights into the current policy landscape, and more.  

 

Community Engagement for Researchers handbook: "a must-have resource for any researcher looking to engage with and learn from their communities. This comprehensive guide offers practical strategies and best practices for building meaningful relationships with community members, collaborating on research projects, and leveraging community insights to advance research goals." by Dr Sam Illingworth (Edinburgh Napier University)

 

Science/Art Collaborations: A Practical Guide: PDF by Simon Watt (with UCL and Wellcome)

 

Communications support

The University of Oxford Communications Hub is an excellent resource for all types of communications, including social media, press releases, websites, etc.  They also have specific guidance on social media accessibility

University of Oxford Medical Sciences Division also has a dedicated page for communications resources, including social media guidelines for staff and students

The University of Edinburgh has an inclusive language editorial style guide which is helpfully comprehensive. 

For how to write image descriptions for Twitter, we recommend this guide by the Royal National Institute for Blind People.  

 

Patient and Public Involvement & Engagement (PPIE) Support

PPI is research being carried out ‘with’ or ‘by’ members of the public, rather than ‘to’, ‘about’ or ‘for’ them. PPIE is a slightly broader umbrella term that also encompasses engagement with patients (even if not conducting research). PPIE across research has developed over the last 20 years from being regarded as, ‘a nice idea to do if possible’, to a funding requirement for key funders. There is increasing evidence that health research conducted with PPIE achieves better outcomes for patients.

 

The Medical Science Division’s PPI Guidance for Researchers is a detailed five-part guide covering definitions, academic literature requirements, strategies and best practice, involving diverse groups, the research cycle, recruitment, communication, and more. The NIHR Oxford Biomedical Research Centre also has useful guidance. For individualised support, contact WIN’s Public Engagement team (Carinne Piekema / Hanna Smyth). WIN’s PPIE Lead, who works closely with Carinne and Hanna, is Mel Fleming

 

"Participatory Research Oxford is a broad and ongoing programme of activity to strengthen the ecosystem for participatory research within, across and beyond the University. This website draws together key outputs from this programme’s first phase of activity: case study videos, insights from researchers, and suggestions for further reading to offer ideas, spark reflection and act as an initial springboard to help develop more participatory processes and practices in research."